Box Score

Postgame Interview with Ron Cottrell (video)

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Houston Baptist got a career-high 25 points from senior forward Art Bernardi as the Huskies overcame an 11-point second-half deficit to slip by UMKC, 63-61, in non-conference basketball Tuesday night at the Swinney Recreation Center.
 
Bernardi went 8-for-11 from the field, including a pair of 3-pointers, and 7-of-10 from the free-throw line to go along with eight rebounds and a career-high five steals and three blocks for the Huskies (5-14). Freshman guard Caleb Crayton added nine points and four rebounds, while freshman guard Rob Lewis had eight points, four rebounds and made a couple of key plays in the closing seconds.
 
Nelson Kirksey led UMKC (6-15) with 14 points, while Thomas Staton added 12 points. Fred Chatmon had 10 points and 17 rebounds, while the Kangaroos' leading scorer, Estan Tyler, was held to nine points.

HBU shot 45 percent for the game, while holding UMKC to 39 percent. The Huskies went 6-for-14 from behind the arc, while the Kangaroos went 6-for-16, but only 1-for-6 in the second half. HBU went 13-for-21 from the free-throw line, and UMKC went 9-for-14. The Kangaroos outrebounded the Huskies, 34-33, and each team turned the ball over 16 times.
 
UMKC scored the game's first five points, but Bernardi scored HBU's first seven, including a 3-pointer which tied it, 7-7, with 14:45 remaining. The Kangaroos took advantage of three-straight Husky turnovers to score six-straight points and take a 15-9 lead. Kirksey hit a three to put UMKC up by seven, but Crayton answered with a trey on the other end and Bernardi sank a pair of free throws to cut the deficit to 20-18 with 9:14 to go.
 
The Kangaroos scored seven-straight to take a nine-point advantage, but sophomore guard Marcel Smith buried a three and sank a free throw to make the score 27-22 with 5:13 left. Tyler nailed back-to-back threes to give UMKC a 33-24 lead, but HBU scored the last six points of the half on layups by freshman guard James Harper, freshman forward Dauson Womack and Smith to trail 35-31 at the break.
 
HBU shot 42 percent from the field in the first half, hit 3-of-7 from 3-point range and 6-of-10 from the free-throw line. UMKC shot 48 percent from the field, made 5-of-10 from behind the arc and 2-of-3 from the line. The Huskies outrebounded the Kangaroos, 17-15.
 
UMKC scored the first four points of the second half, then a 3-pointer by Staton put the Kangaroos ahead by 11 with 17:27 remaining. Bernardi scored the next five with a three-point play and a layup to make the score 44-38, but UMKC quickly struck back to once again lead by 11 with 13:59 left.
 
Lewis made a three-point play and senior guard Anthony Hill drilled a three to cut the deficit to five, but the Kangaroos rebounded to go back up by nine. The Huskies scored the next six, which included a three by Bernardi, to cut the deficit to three with 7:50 on the clock. Crayton drove baseline for a floater, then Hill drained another three from the corner to tie the game, 56-56, with 6:15 to go.
 
Womack's jumper in the lane with 5:15 remaining gave the Huskies their first lead of the game, 58-56. Bernardi hit a fadeaway baseline jumper to put HBU ahead by three, then the Huskies forced a shot clock violation on the other end. The Kangaroos forced a bad pass and Kirksey took it the distance to make it a one-point game, then Chatmon hit a the second of two free throws to tie the game, 60-60, with 2:06 left.
 
Chatmon again made the second of two from the line to give the Kangaroos a one-point lead with 1:12 on the clock. On the other end, Smith missed a layup with the shot clock winding down, but after UMKC rebounded, Crayton tied up the ball and the Huskies regained possession. Bernardi was foulded with 30 seconds left and knocked down both free throws as HBU retook the lead, 62-61.
 
Staton drove hard to the hoop, but was met by three Huskies and missed, then in the scramble for the rebound, Lewis dove to the floor and covered up the ball and called timeout with six seconds left. Lewis was fouled on the inbounds pass and made the first free throw to put HBU ahead by two, but he missed the second, Tyler raced down court and put up a running 27-footer at the buzzer that went long and gave the Huskies the victory. The win comes as head coach Ron Cottrell took the floor for the 700^th time during his HBU career.
 
The Huskies return home for three-straight games, beginning with Ecclesia Saturday at 7:05 p.m. at Sharp Gym.